"Hei, Lilly! Hey!" A voice yelled after me as I was walking down the stairs to buy something sugary to eat.

I needed some kind of energy push right now since I was really lacking the motivation to go through with this horribly boring school day.

Jonas waved at me, taking two steps at a time. "Hei." He said, catching his breath when he finally reached me waiting at the foot of the stairs near the men's bathroom.

"Hei." I smiled at him.

"I didn't see you around school the last two days? Did you catch a cold on Sunday?" He asked and grabbed the straps of his backpack with his hands.

After we had grown tired of running up the hill and sledding down again, we had made our way to Jonas' place, both of our clothes completely soaked from all the snow. He had then borrowed me sweatpants and a hoodie of his to get warm. I still carried them with me in my bag since I had thought that I would be able to give them back to him some time this week. Apparently, that time was now.

"Nei, I was at school." I raised an eyebrow. "You weren't at the Kosegruppa meeting though. Eva wasn't able to participate in the presentations. And it was actually hilariously much fun."

The Kosegruppa meeting had been so much fun on Monday that we had all agreed to do another one next week. Vilde was ecstatic about it. The presentations had been a great idea and everyone had been enjoying themselves. The actual point of them had been to introduce your partner to the group but most of us had just used them as an excuse to embarrass our friend as much as possible, amusing the other group members. The people also really played well together. Everyone liked or at least tolerated the people around them and I was sure that Kosegruppa might actually turn into something really cool this year.
Eva hadn't had that much of a good time though since Jonas had bailed on her without telling her. So she had to sit the meeting out, being the only one who hadn't been allowed to participate. In the end, I had offered to introduce her in an improvised presentation and it had lifted her mood slightly, making the evening somewhat enjoyable for her too. She had told the story of how she and I had met, embarrassing me with it. However, Jonas' behaviour had been absolute shit and Eva had said that she wasn't talking to him at the moment. If I had been in her place, I would have been pissed too.

Jonas adjusted his beanie uncomfortably. "Ja, I know, I had different plans." He said, ripping me out of my train of thought.

I scrunched up my nose in discontent but shrugged and pulled his clothes out of my bag. "Here." I said and handed them to him. "I washed them."

"Oh, you didn't have to." He smiled at me and took the hoodie and the sweats from me. "That's okay."

"Hei!" A female voice said from behind me and I turned slightly to see who was standing there, catching Jonas shocked glance in the direction.

Isabel brushed past me and embraced Jonas, kissing him intimately.
I averted my eyes, feeling uncomfortable invading their privacy like this.

"Hei." The boy opposite of me said and looked at me for a split second before returning his gaze to Isabel. "What are you doing here?"

She creased her forehead and kissed him on the cheek again. "Can't I visit my boyfriend in his break?"

"Sure." He chuckled uneasily and pressed his lips together.

His girlfriend pointed towards the clothing in his hand. "What's this?" Her arm was still around his waist.

"Just some clothing I had borrowed Lilly on Sunday." He shrugged, avoided her eyes.

"But you said you were helping your sister with her school work on Sunday." Her tone was accusing.

I felt bad for Jonas even though I was thrown off that he kept our hang-out a secret. I couldn't help feeling slightly angry about it. I also didn't understand him. Why would he have to keep our friendship a secret? It's not like there was anything between us. He had made sure of that.
Jonas threw me a desperately begging look.

"Ja, I was out with friends and we got into a snow ball fight." I spoke up after I had decided to help him out and question him about it later. My words caused Isabel's attention to now rest on me. "I ended up being drenched and I knew that Jonas lived somewhere near so I asked him for some dry clothes. Just so that I wouldn't catch a cold on the way home."

She looked at me and then at Jonas and then back at me.

"Okay, cool." She smiled at me fleetingly. "Anyways." She said and grinned at the boy next to her. "Want to ditch class with me? We could go eat something?"

Jonas glanced at me and he must have noticed that I wasn't happy about this situation because he opened his mouth to dismiss her.

"No 'but's or 'no's." Isabel said and smiled at him. "We're going. Now." She pulled him away from me. "It was nice meeting you, Lilly."

"Ja, you too." I weakly responded.

"Ha det. I'll see you around." Jonas called out for me but I didn't respond.

Sighing to myself, I watched the two of them disappear around a corner and then I made my way towards the vending machines in the cantine.
Waiting in line in front of the machine for the drinks, I checked my phone.

Chris and William had posted on Instagram.

171 comments

@lilvossberg I only see one boy, the other two people in this pic are pussies 🔫🚬

@chrisschistad Lilliana Vossberg, throwing shade since 1999 @lilvossberg

@magnussonwilliam @lilvossberg you meanie 🤓

201 comments

@lilvossberg why do you again look like the two biggest føkkboys? I thought we had progressed from that stage of male evolution smh 😒

@magnussonwilliam @lilvossberg why are you always so rude in these comments? I'm wounded 💔💥

@chrisschistad you're just jealous of my luscious locks 🤙🏻👦 @lilvossberg

@evamohn2 looking good 😎

@stas_a_vaere_chris @lilvossberg roast them føkkboys🔥🔥🔥

I smiled at the comments section below the photos and at my interaction with Chris and William.
I already missed Chris even though he had only left a few days ago. However, he always knew how to cheer me up and he would probably know what reason Jonas had to keep me a secret from Isabel.
Maybe he was embarrassed of me? I had to talk to Sana. Like asap.

-----------------

I pushed the front door to our apartment open with my foot, my eyes glued to my phone and the conversation I was having with Sana.
She had gone home early from school today since her last two classes had been cancelled. Therefore, I hadn't been able to talk to her about Jonas' behaviour from today and we also hadn't really had time to talk about Sunday.

"Hei."

I looked up and smiled at the image of my Dad leaning in the doorframe to the living room and the kitchen.

"Hallå." I said, kicking off my shoes and shrugging of my coat after placing my backpack on the floor. I then walked over to hug him. "I thought you wouldn't be back until the end of the week." I pulled away and stepped through the living room into the kitchen.

He trailed after me, sitting down on one of the chairs by the table. "They cancelled two of the conferences so I don't have to leave until next Monday.

"Greit." I said and turned, leaning against the sink. "Did you see Fredrik and Alex?"

My Dad rubbed his forehead and nodded. "I also so the youngest. Marius is out with a friend. He didn't even want to stop for a minute to tell me how he liked London though. Alex is still adamant about moving out as he said and Fredrik was off to see his new girlfriend." He grinned at me. "Do you know her?"

I shrugged. "She's some third year from my school. They met at Chris' party about a week ago."

"Christoffer threw a party?" He furrowed his eyebrows. "I thought his parents didn't like people in their apartment."

"Nei, my friend Chris. The girl."

He nodded slowly in understanding. "Do you think the boys are doing okay?"

I sighed and rubbed my forehead in frustration.
Since my Dad was mostly gone for work, he always worried how my brothers and I were doing. The boys weren't really good at talking about how they felt and what was going on in there lives so I was basically my Dad's eyes and ears when he wasn't around. He blamed himself for never being there, missing out on so much in his children's lives. We didn't really care, we still loved him and understood why he had to leave so often. However, my Dad took it very hard.

"They're fine." I reassured him. "Marius said he loved London and that he made some cool friends there. He said he wants to visit them in summer maybe. He was even thinking about applying for university in England as soon as he has graduated."

"Did he take the bus home from the airport on Wednesday?"

"Nei, me and Christoffer picked him up with Chris' car." I shook my head at his question and took a glass out of the shelf above my head, filling it with water.

"Tell him I owe him one. He's invited for dinner this weekend." My Dad leaned back in his chair.

"He's in London now." I grinned and waved him off. "Visiting William."

"Oh, okay, well, another time then." He crossed his arms in front of his chest and I took a sip of my water. "What about the other two?"

"Fredrik was working as per usuals, so there's nothing interesting to say there and then he spent every free minute of last week with this new girl." I gulped down more of the water. "She seems nice though, what I can say from the few times I've met her."

My Dad chuckled. "I was waiting for him to get there."

"Me too." I laughed at that, before frowning. "I haven't actually seen that much of Alex the past weeks. He was gone with Freya for a weekend and then he's been sleeping over at her place mostly." I shrugged and ran a hand through my hair. "I think they're talking about moving in together."

My Dad groaned and rested his elbows on his thighs, leaning forward. "And here I am, trying to keep this family together."

"Is that why you fight with Alex? Because you don't want him to move out?" I scrunched up my brows in confusion. "I thought it was just about renting another apartment."

"Nei, we could afford that. That's not the problem." He waved me off. "I just feel like I wouldn't see him anymore if he moved out."

"That's nonsense." I snorted and refilled my glass of water, drinking some of it. "He would swing by here almost everyday and you know that."

My Dad sighed and leaned back again. "Ja, you're probably right. We have to have a family chat sometime this week. I need all my children together." He rubbed his chin in thought.

"How about Sunday night? No one has an excuse for not being free then." I proposed and he nodded agreeing with me.

"Can you text them? They don't react that well too me 'bossing' them around as Marius likes to put it."

"Sure." I put my glass into the dishwasher.

"How are you?"

I turned to face my Dad. "Hva?"

"How are you?" He repeated himself and pointed towards the chair opposite of him at the table. "How's school? How are your friends? What have you been up to?"

I sat down on the chair and rested my head in my hands. "School's okay, I've actually done quite well in my last Math exam."

"Because you studied with Christoffer? What did you get?"

I grinned proudly and nodded. "Ja, he's surprisingly good at explaining it to me. I got a 4+."

"Hallå, hallå." My Dad laughed and applauded me, whistling through his teeth. "Good job, I'm proud of you."

"Takk." I chuckled. "The other subjects are all okay. I received a 6 on my Norwegian commentary."

"What did you write about?"

"Norwegian youth culture and how society always thinks of young people as too stupid to realise what is going on around them in the world."

My Dad sharply inhaled and nodded slowly. "A highly controversial topic." He smiled. "But a 6? That are definitely not my genes. I sucked in Norwegian. What about your German and French exams? And Biology?"

"6- in German, 5 in French and a 4+ in Biology. That are the results of the old tests though. I'll write some new one's soon."

"You little nerd." My Dad chuckled and I shrugged, smirking.

"I know. I'm a genius."

"You sure are." He laughed at me, crossing his arms in front of his chest again. "How are your friends?"

I smiled broadly. "They're doing okay." I nodded. "I mean, they all have their individual struggles but it's nothing we can't handle."

"That's great to hear." He patted the table with both hands and it grew quiet between us.

The only thing that could be heard was the slight buzzing of the fridge and the last drops falling off the tap into the sink.

"Pappa?" I asked after a while and he returned his gaze to me, humming. "When a person meets up with you but hides it from their friend; what does that say about the friendship you have with this person?"

My Dad creased his forehead and leaned forward in his chair to rest his elbows on the table, mirroring my position. "That depends." He stated and I pressed my lips in a tight line. "If they generally do it without a real reason, I'd say that you aren't really friends."

"But what if they're a boy and hide it from their girlfriend? Aren't there reasonable explanations then?"

He perked up and looked at me, tilting his head to the side slightly. "Is it a boy? I'd need a few more details."

I sighed. "His name is Jonas. He is Eva's ex. You might have seen him somewhere before." I looked up at my Dad. "The one with the dark curls."

"The one with the eyebrows?"

My lips twitched at that and I nodded. "Ja, that one." I continued. "We've spent some time together, ditching a party and talking and everything and realized that we actually fit very well." My Dad nodded, encouraging me to continue. "And I don't know, he never gave me signs or anything but I still felt like he liked me in the same way that I liked him and-"

"More than friends?" He interrupted me and I looked out the window and nodded.

"Everything was going great and I felt like we even flirted at some points." My cheeks heated up, admitting this to my Dad. "But then this weekend, he suddenly appeared with a girl and now they're officially dating and I'm so confused. Like, he never said anything about her before and now all of a sudden, he's in love with her? Or again in love with her? They were together for a short amount of time after him and Eva had broken up." I explained and sighed, biting my lip. "But then he constantly goes on about Christoffer and makes these nasty comments about him as if he was somewhat jealous and I just don't understand him." I faced my Dad again. "Yesterday, we went out and had a really great time before I met Vilde for the movie as I've told you, and today, his girlfriend surprises him in school and apparently, he told her that he helped his sister yesterday and didn't have time for anything else." I huffed. "It's so complicated."

My Dad raised his eyebrows and nodded slowly. Then he widened his eyes for a split moment and shook his head. "To me that Jonas sounds like an idiot."

I smiled weakly. "He probably is."

"He gets your hopes up and then he gets a girlfriend. However, he also doesn't like Christoffer probably because he is so close to you and such a good friend of yours." He clicked his tongue. "And then he keeps the hang-outs with you a secret from his girlfriend."

I pushed some hair out of my face and nodded again.

"To me that sounds as if Jonas is constantly giving you mixed signals." My Dad concluded. "Does he like you? Does he not? Who's to say? The only thing you can do is decide for yourself if you want to confront him about what he is thinking and feeling-" He thought for a second. "-or you can just end this 'friendship' or whatever is going on at the moment. But I certainly wouldn't stick around any longer if he doesn't give you a clear message."

I sighed again. "But maybe he only likes me as a friend and just hates Christoffer because he has been with Eva, Jonas' ex-girlfriend. And maybe his new girlfriend is really jealous and doesn't want him to have any female friends or she freaks out."

"Either way, do you know any of this for sure?" My Dad raised an eyebrow. "You shouldn't make up excuses for his behaviour. In my opinion, you should openly talk about whatever is between you two because I think that the uncertainty is what bothers you."

I leaned back and groaned. "I don't want to talk to him about that though."

My Dad laughed. "I know. You always try to avoid conflict."

I grimaced at him and stood up. "Takk anyways." I huffed.

"Any time." He smiled. "I'm happy that you trust me with these things." He said and looked at me. "I feel like that's not a usual thing for fathers and daughters."

"Well, you're the only parent I have." I shrugged and grinned. "I won't tell you about it